From the time the Pilgrims arrived on American soil, faith in God played an important part in shaping our nation. Images of Moses adorn the Supreme Court in recognition of the Judeo-Christian origin of our laws. But it was Taxes, loss of Liberty and oppression from a mad king that led our Founding Fathers to write The Declaration of Independence and start The American Revolution. Today, those who stand for these ideals no longer call themselves The Silent Majority because we are silent no more.

Tuesday, November 9, 2010

Back burning is a fire fighting technique used to put out forest fires. There is a very good definition of how it is used on Wikipedia. "Back burning is a way of reducing the amount of flammable material during a bushfire by starting small fires along a man made or natural firebreak in front of a main fire front. It is called back burning because the small fires are designed to 'burn back towards the main fire front'. The basic reason for back burning is so that there is little material that can burn when the main fire reaches the burnt area."

There is sometimes a risk that the results of the back burn will increase the size of the main fire instead of reducing it. And because the theory of back burning is a strategy it is not restricted to fire fighting. It also can be applied to politics and especially to the logic used by single-issue groups such as the National Rifle Association handing out political endorsements.

In 2008 the NRA endorsed 53 Democrats for Congress and 52 were elected. These 52 Congressmen had pledged to the NRA they would support the only issue the NRA considered important, the Second Amendment. The problem here is that when these 52 NRA endorsed Congressmen got elected they gave control of the House of Representatives to the Democratic Party who went on to elect Nancy Pelosi as Speaker of the House. We all know, now, what that led to when the Democrats enjoyed two years of absolute majority over the Republicans and ram-roded one piece of socialist legislation after another into law.

The NRA must bear responsibility for the consequences of their endorsements. While there was a momentary halt to anti-gun laws during the last two years, as the NRA endorsed Democrats lived up to their bargain, there was a greater reduction in our Constitutional freedoms from the laws they did in fact help to get passed.

In the 2010 mid-term elections the single-issue NRA, acting like a draft horse wearing blinders, endorsed even more Democrats than they did two years ago. But thanks to the voter turmoil stirred up by the Tea Party movement, only 26 of the 58 NRA endorsed Democrats were elected which ended the Democrat power trip and gave the Republicans an iron-clad House majority. The NRA refuses to acknowledge the errors of their ways in the backing of some questionable Democrats such as Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid. In this year’s election the NRA gave a lot of favorable publicity to Reid but withheld endorsing him against Tea Party favorite Sharron Angle, a Republican who was also a NRA Life Member. But the NRA-PVF (Political Victory Fund) admitted they gave Reid a campaign contribution of over $4000. The NRA didn’t endorse Sharron Angle, either, so it is uncertain what the results would have been if they had. In this situation the NRA simply played politics because they were worried that if the Republican beat the Democrat in Nevada and failed to win a majority in the Senate then the Democrats would have chosen a more liberal Democrat such as Sen. Chuck Schumer from New York as the new Majority Leader.

There seems to be great difference between Democrats elected to Congress and their counterparts elected to state legislatures. On the state level there are many Democrats outside of the liberal bastions of the northeast and west coast that are as conservative as Republicans. This is especially true, as far as gun rights go where here in Kentucky a Democrat lawmaker was responsible for introducing Kentucky’s first Concealed Carry Law. Unfortunately, when many of the same Democrats decide to run for Congress and get elected, they become overwhelmed by the liberal influences in Washington, D.C.

One good thing that did result from those NRA endorsements this year was that some 700 Republicans with NRA endorsements were elected to state legislatures along with 14 new Republican governors. Those new Republican governors will go on to lead the new redistricting of Congressional Districts next year based upon the results of the 2010 census and that will wipe out a few more Democrats currently holding office.

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About Me

My name is Nelson Abdullah. I am 77-years old and after 40 years of working for two major airlines, I retired 15 years ago in 2002, a few months after the 9-11 attack on America. My wife and I have been married for more than 56 years. We celebrated our Golden Anniversary in April 2010.
My wife and I are both lifelong Catholics and registered Republicans.

About this blog

Defending the Constitution.

Our country was created as a Constitutional Republic, a nation of laws, held together by the fabric of the Constitution. The Constitution limits the powers of the government while the first ten amendments, called The Bill of Rights, guarantee the rights of We The People.Defending the Republic.

“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.—That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed,—That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness.” —The Declaration of Independence—July 4th, 1776.

Bill of Rights

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances.

The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.

No person shall be held to answer for a capital, or otherwise infamous crime, unless on a presentment or indictment of a grand jury, except in cases arising in the land or naval forces, or in the militia, when in actual service in time of war or public danger; nor shall any person be subject for the same offense to be twice put in jeopardy of life or limb; nor shall be compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against himself, nor be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor shall private property be taken for public use, without just compensation.

In all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy the right to a speedy and public trial, by an impartial jury of the state and district wherein the crime shall have been committed, which district shall have been previously ascertained by law, and to be informed of the nature and cause of the accusation; to be confronted with the witnesses against him; to have compulsory process for obtaining witnesses in his favor, and to have the assistance of counsel for his defense.

In suits at common law, where the value in controversy shall exceed twenty dollars, the right of trial by jury shall be preserved, and no fact tried by a jury, shall be otherwise reexamined in any court of the United States, than according to the rules of the common law.